Past Adventures: Stories of Immigration

For many people, Bremerhaven was the gateway to a new life in the new world. © Laurel Decher, 2015. What did it feel like to go to America to make a new life? My family and I visited the German Emigration Museum in northern Germany. The museum is in Bremerhaven, literally “Bremen’s harbor”, so there […]

6 ways rhythm helps us feel at home in a new world

New neighbor changes the rhythm of our walks. ©Laurel Decher, 2016. (1) Every culture has its own heartbeat. On the weekend, I practiced a new skill and had a sudden aha! moment about learning to adapt to a new culture by finding the beat. When I lived in West Africa for a year, the people […]

Spring is coming. Let’s not give up on hospitality yet.

Forest road in spring green with a blue sky above. Kottenforst, Germany. © Laurel Decher, 2016. Is Migration Our Lot? Lately, I’ve been wondering if migration is our natural lot and living peacefully in one place all our lives a rarity. Cranes are migrating and their calls remind me of spring. The current news shows […]

Hope for February: ESPERANZA RISING and Esperanza Spalding

Hopeful signs: Tiny snowdrops dusting the ground under giant trees bare of leaves under a gray sky. Kriegshoven, Germany. © Laurel Decher, 2016. Hope keeps cropping up . . . Hope keeps cropping up. In February things can look dark in the Northern Hemisphere, but the light always comes. I want to share some hope […]

Collateral damage: What if there’s no one to vouch for you?

Collateral damage: Ruins of the Castle of Are (Ahr) built by Theodorich of Are around 1100 A.D. What would you do if you lost your identity? Or had no way to prove you were one of the “good guys”? A reputation is a thing you don’t think about until it’s lost. There are so many […]